After an injury-shortened rookie season, Jacksonville’s two-way sensation aims to shatter NFL norms and leverage heavy media buzz to become the franchise's first Comeback Player of the Year.
The Jacksonville Jaguars have never had a player win the Comeback Player of the Year award, but Kyle Nash believes Travis Hunter can change that next season.
Hunter is a dual-position star, playing wide receiver and cornerback. The media closely monitors his performance because he's attempting to break the norm.
Many NFL analysts have touted him as Jacksonville's X-factor, breakout player of the year or most promising building block. One thing is clear about Hunter: he dominates headlines.
"Travis Hunter is going to get Comeback Player of the Year because of the press surrounding him, and because of the sideshow that he is cause he plays both sides," Nash said on "The Duval Drive" podcast last Sunday. "If he finishes the season contributing on both sides, as Liam Coen claims he's going to, he's going to win."
His rookie season ended prematurely due to tearing his LCL in his right knee. The injury sparked offseason debates about how Jacksonville should optimize its second-overall pick.
Coach Coen and general manager James Gladstone quieted those discussions with assertiveness. They said Hunter would still play offense and defense, but he'll see more snaps at cornerback.
Impacting the game as a dual-position player is all he has known throughout his career. After all, he had success doing that at the college level, especially in the Big 12 at Colorado. Hunter won the 2023 Heisman, hauling in 96 receptions for 1,258 yards and 15 touchdowns; 24 tackles, one forced fumble and four interceptions that led to him winning Big 12 Defensive Player of the Year.
As he spends the offseason rehabbing from injury, Hunter has spent his offseason in the Jaguars' walkthrough room. It's supplemented his off-field time, helping him interact with the team and keep up with playbook changes.
"It's super important because I can't go outside and get live reps," Hunter told reporters on May 27. "So having that room, having them build it a lot bigger than what I expected was very great. You know, I go in there every single day."
Quarterbacks typically win the Comeback Player of the Year award. The position dominated the award for seven straight seasons before San Francisco 49ers running back Christian McCaffrey won it last season.
Keenan Allen is the last wide receiver to win CPOY in 2017, and Eric Berry is the last defensive player to win in 2015. Hunter winning the award, as Nash predicts, would break the norm, just as he's doing as a two-way player.
All eyes will be on Hunter in 2026, as much as they were last season, but this time, an award may be on the horizon for him.
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